1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of medically treating ulcers of the skin.
2. Description of the Background Art
Skin ulcers, such as abrasion ulcers, venostasis ulcers and decubitus ulcers, are open sores or lesions of the skin characterized by wasting away of tissue and sometimes accompanied by formation of pus.
Decubitus ulcers, sometimes called pressure wounds or bedsores, involve one of the most costly and dreaded skin conditions affecting particularly elderly geriatric patients. Such sores or ulcers are chronic, morbid conditions of the skin commonly found among the disabled, elderly and bedridden population of hospitals and nursing homes. It is estimated that one out of three people 65 years of age or older suffer or have suffered from this dreaded affliction. As predicted by the U.S. Census Bureau, by the year 2010 there will be over 65 million people in the United States in this geriatric age group. Not only does the affliction present a problem to the patient, but also to the institution caring for such individuals. The tremendous cost to the State and Federal Governments to cover the cost of caring for such wounds is staggering. It is estimated by recent reports summing up patient care hours for diagnostic related groupings, that the cost of pressure sore treatment amounts to as much as $62,500.00 per patient annually. This is indeed draining to the institutional health care budget.
Bedsores are often under treatment for months and sometimes even years with daily application of generally ineffective anecdotal therapies. Such anecdotal therapies range from mechanical devices such as cotton filled doughnuts, air filled mattresses, rotating beds, Clinitron beds, foam mattresses and air suspension mattresses, to a variety of topical preparations which are applied locally to the wound area including "debriders" or enzyme preparations to eat away the dead cells so that the living cells may survive, topical antibiotics to treat infections of the area, betadine washes, normal saline rinses, hydrogen peroxide soaks, wet to dry dressings, Debrisan.TM., duoderm, occlusive dressings, silvadine ointments, elase ointments and travase ointment.
There remains an urgent need in the art for improved methods for treating ulcers of the skin.